title: Efficient 1856 nm emission from Tm,Mg:LiNbO3 laser.
abstract: Efficient continuous-wave laser emission at 1856 nm from a Tm,Mg:LiNbO(3) crystal slab with high Tm(3+) doping concentration is reported. A maximum output power of 2.62 W is realized with a slope efficiency of 19.6% and the beam quality factor M(2) of 1.7 at room temperature. We believe that this is the first demonstration of watt-level laser operation in Tm,Mg:LiNbO(3) crystal and the output power is four orders of magnitude higher than that reported previously in Tm-doped LiNbO(3) crystal. Performance degradation due to the photorefractive effect under high intensity 1856 nm laser is not observed thanks to the co-doping of magnesium ions. Quantitative analysis about the long-term photorefractive effect is also provided. Multi-wavelength laser operation is realized by using different narrow-band output couplers. This demonstration opens up a viable pathway towards 2-μm integrated optic devices for achieving laser oscillation, electro-optic and nonlinear optical effects within just one sample simultaneously.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Hongqiang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Peixiong
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hang
authors.forename: Jianqiu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xu